


Overworked

by Aceofstars16



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-11
Updated: 2017-11-11
Packaged: 2019-01-31 23:56:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12692805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aceofstars16/pseuds/Aceofstars16
Summary: Using the prompts “I’ve had enough” and “You need sleep." Peter is wearing himself out. When Tony finds out he makes sure the kid gets the rest he needs.





	Overworked

**Author's Note:**

> [Tumblr post](http://aceofstars16.tumblr.com/post/164468495263/overworked)

It took a lot for Peter to be done. He had been beaten and bruised in more places than he could count, by more villains than he could name. Maybe villain was a strong word for some of the people he stopped, but it made him feel more like a hero when he called them that. But when it came to mental exhaustion, Peter found he wasn’t quite so resilient.

Fighting crime was a joy. Peter loved it, it gave him a thrill, and he was making a difference in it, even if it was just helping out the little guy. But it bit into a huge chunk of his time for schoolwork, especially during finals.

The first few days had been okay. He had managed for the most part. But as tests got closer, his study time got longer, which meant less sleep. Because he couldn’t give up being Spiderman. Not even for a few weeks. The city needed him, and he wasn’t going to let them down. So as the days passed, he had to go off of less and less sleep. His body was constantly tired and his mind was not much better. He wasn’t as fast in class or on the streets. Coming home each day, he only wanted to crash on the couch and sleep, but he made himself pull his books out and study as much as he could. But his eyes tended to just scan the pages, not taking in any of the information. Things he would’ve been able to figure out in no time before, he was now struggling with.

And that’s how he found himself at Tony’s lab. He just needed a little help, he was sure if Tony could just explain it to him, he would grasp it. It had happened once or twice before, and it had always been a big help. However today was different. As Tony spoke, Peter found his brain zoning out. Nothing made sense, everything seemed fuzzy.

I can’t do this, he thought to himself. “I’ve had enough.”

“What?” Tony stopped his explanation and narrowed his eyes at Peter in concern.

Crap, had he said that aloud? “Uh, nothing. Sorry, keep going,” Peter said quickly, trying to shake his head to wake up his senses. It worked for a second but that was about it.

“Kid, you’ve been staring at the wall this entire time. Are you even paying attention?”

“Yeah, totally!”

“What was I just talking about?”

He was in for it now, but he could remember some of what he had been studying. Chemistry right? “Uhh…the molecular density of uranium?”

“Not even close. What’s going on? You’re usually hooked on every word I say.” There was a slight tease in Tony’s voice, typical.

“Not every word,” Peter said, trying to play back.

“Alright, almost every word. Now, are you going to tell me what’s going on or should I just let you keep staring at the wall while I work?”

Letting out a sigh, Peter realized he couldn’t keep this up - the front that he was doing okay, that he could manage this. “It’s just school. Finals are coming up and that along with crime fighting it has been…stressful.”

Tony nodded. “And how long have you been going off the bare minimum of sleep?”

“What? I haven’t…how did you know?” Peter fumbled over his words, caught off guard.

“You’ve got bags under your eyes only a blind man could miss. Plus I’ve had my fair share of sleepless nights. So?”

“A week or so…” Peter said quietly, figuring he shouldn’t even try to dance around the truth anymore. He was too tired to play that game anyway.

“Alright. That’s it. Go to your room and lie down. No work, no games, nothing.” Tony said quickly, grabbing Peter’s textbook and slamming it shut.

“What?!? No! I need to study, I need to figure out this problem, I need-”

“Sleep. The answer is, you need to sleep. Trust me kid. If you are going off of too little sleep you will burn yourself out. The only way you are going to understand this stuff is with some rest. Now, go! Not buts, no arguments.” The firmness in Tony’s voice dissuaded Peter from any further discussion of the matter. That, plus the fact that sleep did sound quite good right about now.

“Okay…”

“Good, now skedaddle. You know where to go.”

Peter smiled slightly and nodded then headed out of the room. But he paused before reaching the stairs. “Thanks, Tony.”

“Yup, now go on,” Tony said, shooing Peter with his hand as his attention had already been redirected towards the project he had been working on before.

Peter complied. And as it happened, sleep really was just the thing he had needed.


End file.
